The Replacement of the Sword Hero

Chapter Eighteen: Ambush

I opened my eyes to Eclair shaking me quite roughly. "Sword Hero, wake up." I could feel from the way she was gripping my shoulders that she had either been trying to wake me up for a long time, or she was still in a mood with me from last night. "It's not like you to sleep in this late."
"Is he still not awake yet? Let me try." Came Naofumi's voice from somewhere behind Eclair.
"Cheep! Cheep!"
"Bubba look, it likes me!" Keel exclaimed happily as something chirped noisily in the background.
"Enough, I'm awake." I said, sitting up.
"You must have been really tired, Mr. Wilkinson." Atla remarked.
"Did I really sleep in that late?" I asked.
"Yes!" Naofumi snapped, and thrust a hand in front of my face. "Now, what's this?" Sitting on his palm was a small pink chick.
"Cheep!"

"Well that definitely looks like a filolial." I said.
"Is it the one I'm supposed to have?" Naofumi asked.
"Well I think so... It might be."
"Urgh." He grunted, dissatisfied with my uncertain answer.
"What are you going to call it?"
"I don't know. If it's a filolial, how about Filo?" He said. I gave him a thumbs up. Perfect!
"Very creative." Said Raphtalia.
"Oh, give me a break." Naofumi said as the chick scampered up his arm.
"What about this one?" Asked Rifana. I got out of bed and shrugged my jacket on, standing up to see what she was talking about.
"Cheep!" A very dark, navy-blue chick was perched on Keel's head.
"You can come up with a name for that one if you like, since I'm not creative enough." Naofumi muttered sarcastically.

"Bubba!" Keel exclaimed. "Since her colour is like a deep, beautiful night sky, what about 'Yozora?' That means 'night sky!' Whaddya think?"
"Not bad, not bad." Naofumi scratched his chin. Suddenly Filo chirped and jumped onto his head.
"Cheeeeeeep!" She chirped and rubbed her fluffy cheeks against his face. He smiled despite himself.
"You suggested the night sky... I like that. How about we name it after the moon. Maybe Luna?"
"That's a lovely name." Rifana said.
"It's beautiful." Keel agreed.

Luna... Why did that name ring a bell? I wondered to myself. I looked at Naofumi, smiling happily as Filo rubbed her soft plumage against his face. He had a new type of shield on his arm, probably one related to raising monsters. Raphtalia puffed her cheeks out in a sulk as Naofumi ignored her to play with Filo. Rifana and Keel fussed over Luna. Eclair and Atla stood beside me while Fohl and Zaifa lingered in the doorway. The room which was spacious enough for two felt rather cramped with the addition of all these extra people.
"What are you doing in my room anyway?" I asked the next obvious question.
"Well, I was curious... You know, if I had chosen the right one or not." Naofumi answered.
"He wanted to show them off because he thinks they're cute." Rifana murmured.
"Okay, come on, let's give him some space." Naofumi said, ushering the girls out of the room.

I told Fohl and Zaifa to go pack their things, and Atla sat on my bed while Eclair and I finished getting ready to leave. I was glad that the filolial question had been resolved so easily. It seemed that there really was some truth to Ren's speculation last night. I could finally stop worrying now that Naofumi had Filo. He even gave her the same name, unprompted... So what about his extra filolial, Luna? The navy coloured chick had seemed really attached to Keel. She reminded me of something, but I couldn't quite recall it. With a sigh, I disregarded the matter and unfolded the map given to us by Captain Cyrus.
"Where do you want to go this time, Sword Hero?" Eclair asked, peeking over at the map. I racked my brains trying to think. Where did Motoyasu get his filolials from in the spin-off series?
"Which of these routes lead to Siltvelt?" I asked.
"These ones." Eclair traced some prominent roads on the map with an elegant finger. "This road is the most direct route. During the wars with Siltvelt it was stained with so much blood..."
I looked at the road she was highlighting. It crossed the border of Melromarc and disappeared off the map. There must be a filolial farm somewhere nearby. That was the place.